Sydney Gay & Lesbian Choir, Sydney’s vibrant same-sex ballroom dance community and some of our city’s brightest professional music theatre stars are presenting a dazzling song and dance spectacular. CHEEK TO CHEEK: A Ballroom Fantasia is a queer Cinderella tale with the message that “anyone can go to the ball”.

The fully-staged juke box musical will be performed at The Roundhouse, UNSW in Kensington with three performances only on June 20 and 21.

This glittering, funny, toe-tapping show is packed with dance music classics from across the decades, from Irving Berlin to Donna Summer.

CHEEK TO CHEEK is being directed by acclaimed music theatre performer and director Tyran Parke.

The concept for the show was partly inspired by a news story last year that the British Dance Council were seeking to define a dance partnership as having to consist of a man and a ‘lady’, effectively banning same-sex ballroom dance couples from mainstream contests.

In the show, Frederika (Johanna Allen) and Roger, or Ginger to his friends (Ben Palumbo), have been thrown together as ballroom dance partners since they were five years old. At the annual Tasman Strait Ballroom Championships, the Judge (Mark Taylor) ensures that all the couples abide by the ballroom regulations. However a disastrous tango tangle makes them each realise that they just ‘wanna dance with somebody who loves them’. Along comes a drag queen (Tom Sharah) on her way to the Rainbow Ball, and like all good fairy godmothers she gives Fred and Ginger the confidence to break the rules of ballroom and search for true love on the dance floor.

Written by: Andrew Dunn & Tyran Parke
Director: Tyran Parke
Music Director: Dr Sarah Penicka-Smith
Choreographer: Andrew Koblar
Lighting Designer: Christopher Page
Producer: Andrew Dunn
Band: Gareth Chan (piano), Paul Laszlo (bass), Loretta Palmeiro (clarinet, sax), Ann Palumbo (guitar), Cameron Reid (drums)